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Plants to fill this space throughout the year? Help

VegplotmummyVegplotmummy Posts: 96
edited July 2018 in Plants
Morning all!
So I have this area that I cleared in late spring, it faces south. It does carry on further down but gets thinner after the holly tree. 
I've got spring sorted as I've already got my daffs, tulips and crocus on order.
I would like some interest all year round if poss.
I have got a honeysuckle I've saved from the garden but no idea what variety it is! That I could train down the wall. 
I would like plants that can near enough fend for themselves. (dont have to water regularly)
Ideas greatly appreciated 😁 

Posts

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Tricky - especially as it borders a road. Is it a quiet road? Farm traffic?
    Any plants will need to be pretty tough to survive there. I'd go for some small shrubs and a few tall verticals for the back [against the wall] Some small hard working perennials for ground cover between the shrubs too, which will cover your bulb foliage.
    The loved/hated Alchemilla mollis will thrive there, as will the equally loved/hated Vincas [periwinkles] You could have a couple of Hebes, which will look after themselves, and offer cover for small creatures and birds. Euphorbias will do well - plenty of diffreent types offering a variety of height etc.
    A few of the little drumstick alliums [Sphaerocephalon] for height and Verbena bonariensis drifting through. The squirrels may nick a few of the alliums, but they're really cheap to buy, and do their thing very well. 
    Your honeysuckle might struggle unless you can get it planted in a shadier bit, and keep it well enough watered. Worth a shot though. 
    A few easy annuals chucked in - nigella, larkspur, eryngium etc, when you remember, or can be bothered  ;)
    Everything will need watered well to get established, and you may find it's a trial and error job for a while. If you don't actually own that bit of land, you may also find the council coming along with a strimmer.... :/

    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • VegplotmummyVegplotmummy Posts: 96
    It's pretty quiet usually only get tractors and horses down here. We do have a very small primary school opposite but that's no bother either. 
    I have got allium bulbs could pop some of them in, not seen a squirrel around here so they may be safe 😂. Love verbena bonariensis (already got some in the garden) so definate 👍. Hebes a great shout! 
    There's some iris that are winter flowering? Might ask my dad (he grows them) I should know the answer to that really! lol
    I don't think the council will do anything, were a rural village 🤔
  • quarteracrefarmhelpquarteracrefarmhelp Posts: 16
    looks an ideal spot for espalier apple or pear trees , getting hardy breeds on dwarfing rootstocks could be a good way to go , a foot away from the wall and trimmed flat in a cordon style. Train to six foot high. Espalier are easy to grow and maintain. Also if you are not too worried about the fruit then they will survive water shortages and much mistreatment, the modern varieties of apple tree are veritable weeds.  Then as a ground cover you can use strawberries, will outcompete most things so stop most other weeds coming through. Birds and bees will love you , and if it is not a busy road the fruit may be okay to eat .  
    Grow it yourself, it's worth it in the end. . . 
  • FireFire Posts: 19,096
    Centranthus ruber alba.

  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    edited July 2018
    I have planted spring flowering bulbs along a similar wall, with a grass verge. The council man with the sprayer knows not to spray the leaves when they are dying down. As it is prone to getting very dry for the rest of the summer, and the mower man gets a bit enthusiastic, that is all there is there.
     There was a self seeded buddleja that survived a bit too well.  You could plant buddlejas a few inches away from the wall, cut them down hard as the bulbs are coming into flower.

  • raisingirlraisingirl Posts: 7,093
    Vegplotmummy said:

    There's some iris that are winter flowering? Might ask my dad (he grows them) I should know the answer to that really! lol

    iris unguicularis. 

    Japanese anenomes for autumn? They either thrive or die - don't seem to have a middle ground. I can't kill them in my garden, even mowing them occasionally doesn't slow them up. Likewise goldenrod. 
    Erigeron and borage for summer
    Gardening on the edge of Exmoor, in Devon

    “It's still magic even if you know how it's done.” 
  • Guernsey Donkey2Guernsey Donkey2 Posts: 6,713
    Do vehicles mount this area to let wider than average vehicles pass by, as the road appears to be quite narrow?  If so, I don't recommend planting anything of value if it may be driven on. However a honeysuckle or Virginia Creeper may be a good idea for growing up the wall. Who owns that strip of land?
  • VegplotmummyVegplotmummy Posts: 96
    edited July 2018
    Thanks all, will look into the suggestions. 
    @raisingirl the Japanese anenomes have gorgeous flowers, it says 1/ 1.5m height. Is that right? 
    @Guernsey Donkey2 You can get 2 cars down, very good drivers around here! 😎 If a tractor comes down you wait at the top of the road, you've got no chance of your car winning that chicken run! The verge has been clear since around may time, I've left it and not planted anything to test and see if anyone mounts it. No one has. I'm 99% sure it's my land.
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